Anxiety Disorders Flashcards
Define: anxiety
-a general state of apprehension or psychological tension
Define: generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
- a continuous state of anxiety
- marked by feelings of dread, worry, apprehension
- difficulties in concentrating
- signs of motor tension
Generalized anxiety disorder occurs during…
-majority of days during a 6-month period
GAD _____ brought on by physical causes.
-is not
Some GAD sufferers may have a _________ to experience symptoms when in ________ or _________ situations.
- genetic disposition
- unfamiliar
- uncontrollable
In GAD, genes may be involved in causing abnormality in…
- amygdala (acquisition of fear)
- prefrontal cortex (ability to realize when danger’s passed)
GAD sufferers have a mental bias in the way they…
-attend to and process threatening information
What basic situation can call for a diagnosis of PTSD?
-if stress symptoms from a crisis or trauma persist for one month or longer and begin to impair a person’s functioning
Define: posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
an anxiety disorder in which a person who has experienced a traumatic or life-threatening event has symptoms such as…
- psychic numbing
- reliving of the trauma
- increased physiological arousal
PTSD symptoms have a _______ component.
-heritable
People diagnosed with PTSD often have a history of…
psychological problems such as…
- anxiety
- impulse aggression
PTSD sufferers are more likely to have ______, anxiety-producing ways of thinking that _______ the traumatic event.
- self-defeating
- precede
In many PTSD sufferers, the _________ is smaller than average.
-hippocampus
Define: panic disorder
an anxiety disorder in which a person experiences…
- recurrent panic attacks
- periods of intense fear
- feelings of impending doom
- physiological symptoms (rapid heart rate, dizziness)
The panic attacks may last…
-a few minutes to several hours
Symptoms of panic include…
- hot and cold flashes
- sweating
- trembling, shaking, dizziness
- rapid heart rate
- feelings of unreality
- chest pain/discomfort
- fear of losing control, dying, etc.
- feels like heart attack
Panic attacks usually occur in the aftermath of…
- frightening experience
- specific worries
- stress
- prolonged emotion
The difference between people who develop panic disorder and people who don’t lies…
-in their interpretation of bodily reactions
Define: phobia
-exaggerated fear of a specific situation, activity, or object
The most disabling fear disorder is…
-agoraphobia
Define: agoraphobia
-a set of phobias, often triggered by a panic attack, involving the basic fear of being away from a safe place or person
Psychologists refer to agoraphobia as…
-“fear of fears”
Define: obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
-an anxiety disorder in which a person feels trapped in repetitive thoughts (obsessions) and ritualized behaviors (compulsions) in order to reduce anxiety
Obsessive, frightening thoughts of OCD reflect…
-impaired ways of reasoning and processing information
In many people with OCD, abnormalities in _________ create cognitive rigidity, an inability to let go of intrusive thoughts, and ______ rigidity, an inability to alter compulsive behavior.
- prefrontal cortex
- behavioral
